


Dance Me to the End

by paintingfire



Category: X Factor RPF
Genre: Dancing, Declarations Of Love, M/M, Singing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-11-22
Updated: 2011-11-22
Packaged: 2017-10-26 10:39:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,256
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/282094
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/paintingfire/pseuds/paintingfire
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>" Instead it seemed the big announcement was turning into something as closely orchestrated as the royal wedding."</p><p>It's the party and press conference to mark the end of the X Factor tour and Matt and Aiden want to simply, finally, make it known that they are a couple, but the X Factor spin machine still have them in their grasp. Luckily they've got some good friends who want nothing more than to make their dream come true.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Dance Me to the End

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by the following lyrics:
> 
> “Dance me through the panic 'til I'm gathered safely in.  
> Lift me like an olive branch and be my homeward dove.”  
> \- Dance Me to the End of Love (Leonard Cohen)
> 
> The version that Rebecca sings in the story is the Madeleine Peyroux one (see below).
> 
> Disclaimer: I am a mere storyteller, a painter of words. I have no secret mind-reading powers. The characterisations of the people and portrayal of events within the following story are therefore wholly fictitious. A fairytale begins "Once upon a time" but it does not mean it really happened. Remember that and we'll all live happily ever after!

  
  


**Dance Me to the End**

They'd wanted to do it at the end of the final show of the tour. Just reach out to each other and do it.

But the X Factor spinners (PR team to you and me) said they couldn't "control" it there, that it would be all over Twitter in seconds and that it would snowball into some sort of controversy and their months of careful management would be wasted. Plus Matt and Aiden "owed" the newspapers and the magazine shows.

So this was why the media were all over the after tour party like a particularly virulent case of chicken pox. Popping up unexpectedly everywhere, oozing smarminess trying to get juicy quotes out of the likes of Katie and Wagner, which let's face it wasn't the most difficult of jobs. The party was always to be more about press ops than the contestants and crew, but there was a buzz of expectation as not even the spinners were normally this generous to the baying hoards.

Matt and Aiden had found themselves being told they had to make a press statement, when all they wanted was just to make the truth known, have a little celebratory sigh of relief and get on with their lives. Instead it seemed the big announcement was turning into something as closely orchestrated as the royal wedding.

=+=

So there they would have to sit, dying slowly of embarrassment, getting ready to confirm that:

Yes, it was a romance, not a bromance.  
Yes, they were together and exclusive.

Yes, Matt would say they loved each other.  
Aiden saying "In love", Matt to turn to him and respond in kind "In love".

No, if you looked back they never actually lied and were always very open about their feelings towards each other with the media, and to the fans.

No, they didn't announce it before because they couldn't as all the ensuing attention would not have been fair on the other competitors.

No, they hadn't broken any rules by having a relationship, the only reason that alleged rule might exist was to stop the said problem of bias in the amount of media coverage and the effect it could have on the voting figures in the competition.

So, this all was why they had waited until their obligations to the show ended before making this statement. Thank you very much, goodnight.

=+=

But they'd wanted to do it their way, a simple nod and a wink to the fans that yes, they'd been right all along. The fact they'd been denied this had totally taken the shine of what should have been a high point of their relationship, and it showed.

And if Matt and Aiden were unhappy, so were the other contestants on the tour on their behalf. All of them. Even the ones you think wouldn't have cared. So that was why they hatched the plan. Which, they would say later, they managed to put into action with a thoroughness that would have put a special ops team to shame.

One Direction moved between tables of journos, employing their favourite double decoy tag-team of Harry and Niall. The former in cute puppy dog mode, the latter doing very loud Peter Dickson impressions. That left Liam, Zayn and Louis to pull the sleight of hand movements necessary to swap the still sealed press releases with the new ones that Mary had printed up.

It wasn't that she'd re-written them. More that she'd swapped them with Matt and Aiden's "scripted answers", which let's face it actually sounded a bit better than the bare facts they replaced, though not much. But as they were going to stop her boys getting asked the leading questions in the first place she was going to make darn sure that the information was available. Especially to the Daily Mail.

Wagner, Katie and Cher were moving around the room playing at being wine waiters, making sure everybody had drunk a little, or a lot, more than they planned. Of course the guests from the press just thought they were trying to get their photos taken (which they were), so thought nothing amiss. Apart from the fact that Wagner was not trying to charge them, Katie wasn't dropping hints about possible scandals and Cher well, she was stomping about, in her delicate manner, in an outfit whose look was half stolen from Natalie Portman's Black Swan character and half from Natalie Portman's Oscar statuette, so actually she appeared to be her normal self. At least it made a change from the Cheryl and Rihanna homages.

Aiden and Matt were in the "private" VIP area. In other words outside, backs to the wall under a tatty awning drawing on their cigarettes as if their lives depended on it praying that this would work.

Rebecca and Paije had decided it would take the two of them to persuade them to actually come in, and stop hiding from their own "press team".

They had no need to hide because the coast was clear. Thanks to the fact Liam, he who would _never_ lie, had happened to mention the words d _owning shots_ , _Katie_ , and _Wagner's bare back_ rather loudly in their vicinity. Funny how the minders ran to the other room like they were in training for the Olympic 100m sprint.

So Rebecca and Paije each hooked arms with one half of Maiden, smiled and said let's do this.

=+=

You'd have thought the powers that be would have found it odd that the normally shy Rebecca had volunteered to open the press conference part of the evening by performing a song unaccompanied, but they'd been so taken with the idea of all that extra publicity (she was even wearing a fascinator, especially to indulge the Daily Mail's fetish for her hats) that they'd agreed without question.

Rebecca taking her place at the microphone and to start to sing was the last thing that night that went by way of the original schedule. The minute the lights dimmed to a less intrusive hue (thank you Zayn for persuading the staging manager that the only way Louis would let him go and stop talking incessantly was if they got shown the control area) an expectant murmur descended on the room.

"It's really happening, isn't it Matt?" Aiden whispered in to the ear of the man next to him in the shadows.

"Looks like it. You better lead, you know I'm crap at this sort of thing", Matt mumbled unable to resist sucking on Aiden's ear as his lips were so close to it. 

"I know, I even managed to let the press know in advance that I was the better dancer, so they shouldn't be surprised. I'm still shitting myself though"

"Well that's a charming picture to put in my mind at this precise moment! Would you rather we went back on script?"

"No way!". "Okay, just remember what we planned, just look at each other, listen to Rebecca and ignore everything else.

Their cue was an obvious one, the moment when the murmurs of appreciation were replaced with hisses of confusion as the words " _The first time ever I saw your face_ " came out of Rebecca's mouth instead of one of her own songs.

It was suddenly obvious that someone had rewritten not just the running order but the whole script. And that would be the once rivals, now friends, who did this simply out of love and respect for the winner and his boyfriend.

=+=

  
Matt stepped out first into the pool of light in front of Rebecca, smiled and slightly nodded to Aiden who, taking about the biggest breath he ever had in his life (apart from his first one), closed his eyes and reached one hand out to Matt.

The calloused fingertips gently drawing circles on his palm in return all he needed to feel suddenly totally at ease. He needn't have worried, he naturally had blocked everyone else out. They moved together, arms encircling, never taking their eyes off each other, and started to dance to the slow slow words of the song Rebecca was delivering in a very simple, almost reverential manner.

The beat when Matt reached up and trailed his fingers down the side of Aiden's face, then allowed his thumb to press lightly across his lips before letting his hand fall back to the taller man's neck, was the moment the collective indrawn breath in the room was suddenly released in one great shock filled gasp. Even those, like the Gay Times journalist, who had seen it coming had never seen _this_ coming. The gasp being replaced by a frantic buzz as cameras were all immediately trained on the two men.

The two men who, exchanging silent reassurances, settled more naturally into each others arms. Matt, as usual, nuzzled into Aiden's neck, tongue wanting to search for the vein whose pulse he knew so intimately. Aiden's hand curved possessively round the small of Matt's back, one thumb stroking firmly across his hip bone, pulling them in tighter.

They tensed suddenly, as they saw their press team looking as if they were going to pounce on them. But then they remembered the plan, so sank back down into the haven of each other's arms.

Rebecca, easier to see by the watching crowd than the couple moving to the music, gave a slight nod, and smiled as a bowing Wagner started an, admittedly strange, tango like dance with Mary, twirling past, blocking off Matt and Aiden from the minders.

And so the pattern was set. Every time someone tried to shout a (frankly rhetorical) question at Matt and Aiden, or someone looked as if they were going to stop them, the still singing Rebecca gave a small nod of her head and another couple took to the floor. Showing their unspeaking support for the real couple lost in a world of their own in their midst.

And what partnerships they were. Katie and Cher, who being them decided to get tongues wagging by getting rather more touchy feely than was probably necessary. All sharp hands against soft places. Paije went over to Rebecca, who'd now started on a Madeleine Peyroux arrangement of a Leonard Cohen number, and just kind of half twirled her, using the fact that she had to sing as the restraint he needed not to try and rock out something a little more fun, regardless if it fitted the mood.

Now as for the One Direction boys, they'd been fighting over who should dance with who for the last three days. It was finally Liam who brought harmony by saying they could all just swap partners as the mood took them [He was still rather worried by the fact that the moment he said it Louis' face lit up in a massive grin which stayed there for 32 minutes, not that he'd been counting].

So Liam danced with Louis, and they danced surprisingly well together. Both diffusing the different kind of awkwardness the other had. And Liam danced with Zayn, even though they both looked as if they were going to fall asleep on each others shoulders. Regardless it did still pass as dancing. Louis held Harry aloft, Harry's legs to Louis chest and they just circled, Harry arms outstretched, curls thrown back, looking like some strange totem. Niall made sure he had a turn with everyone, awkwardly, arms outstretched as if he was an over eager little boy at a wedding trying to dance properly with the grown ups. Totally loving every minute of it.

And moving in amongst their circle of acceptance Matt and Aiden continued to dance. They quite frankly had never looked more at ease, peaceful smiles across their faces, bodies melting in to one another. Running fingertips gently over exposed skin. Though there was nothing overtly sexual about the way they held each other, they knew this wasn't the time or the place. Instead they just radiated a sense of rightness, they fitted together, home for one another. No-one looking at them could ever doubt that they were just a normal couple, totally in love with each other.

Most of their true fans had already learnt to read between the lines, so why would they want to insult their intelligence by spelling it out. If they as individuals had fans that didn't like their choice of partner, well all that meant was they needed to do some soul searching about what being a fan of someone really meant. Matt and Aiden wanted nothing but the best for their fans, so surely they could expect the same in return.

So there would be no PR spin, no tabloid speculation, because the world would be able to watch and see for themselves how perfect they were together.

Which was how they'd always planned it.

No need for over the top declarations. No sitting before people making a scripted announcement. No singing The Ballad of Maiden to each other on stage. No politically correct kissing at the end of the final concert.

They had just planned to naturally move together, and hold each other and dance, enjoy the moment with the other acts, letting the music and their emotions do the talking for them. Lovers dancing amongst their friends safe from, and in front of, the world.

Aiden wrapped protectively round Matt, leading him in gentle movement. Matt's hand behind Aiden's neck, his head on his chest dancing to the rhythm of their hearts. Dancing to the end of love.

 **[The End]**   


  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Yes, those that know your m/m movies will be well aware that I was totally inspired by the ending of _Beautiful Thing_ , hence me including the YT of the scene above.


End file.
